Compared to Han, Chikuma's shock ran even deeper.
He simply couldn't fathom how human Strength could possibly reach such unimaginable levels!
Two arms were enough to capture them both—so how many hundreds of Bijuu could the rest of those arms hold?
The thought of how he and his leader had once tried to show off their strength in front of this man now seemed absurdly laughable.
Just then, Seiki's voice echoed from the top of the statue.
"Shall we two finally be able to talk calmly now?"
At Seiki's words, Han's face darkened—when you've got us literally in your grip, who dares not stay calm?
"Uh...could you at least let us down first?"
Being shown off like monkeys was seriously embarrassing.
"Of course—but if you two cause trouble again, I'll just grab you right back up!"
With that, Seiki manipulated the statue to open its palm and dropped the pair to the ground.
Back on the ground, the two glared at each other again, eyes locked in a fierce stare-down. But with Seiki still present, they barely managed to restrain themselves from attacking.
Seeing this, Seiki stepped in with calming words—"Why don't we all sit down and talk this out peacefully?"
"I absolutely refuse to negotiate with the invader who destroyed our Hero Water!" Chikuma shot back angrily at Han.
Though slightly uneasy, Han remained defiant—"If you hadn't fought me for it, would that Hero Water even have shattered at all?"
Chikuma laughed bitterly in rage—"That Hero Water was originally ours from Takumi! It was you who tried grabbing it first!"
"You can't prove that! Who knows if the Hero Water you made even used the reward money Kakuzu returned? If you ask me, the Hero Water should be treated as questionable stolen goods!"
"You're talking nonsense!"
"How rude!"
"I wasn't calling a person names—I was calling out the trash!"
"You—"
As the two seemed about to break into another shouting match, Seiki quickly played the mediator.
"Since I'm just a bystander, perhaps I could offer a few words?"
Han and Chikuma fell silent—how could we possibly stop you from speaking?
"Han-sama," Seiki began, turning first to him, "Regarding your accusation that Takumi ordered Kakuzu to do this, do you have any evidence?"
Han hesitated—"Well, how could I possibly have evidence for something like that?"
"Exactly. Without evidence, this accusation carries no weight," Seiki continued, "but everyone saw you directly responsible for Takumi losing the Hero Water. So I suggest—why don't you compensate for this incident first, and separately investigate whether there's any connection between Kakuzu and Takumi? Let's handle these two matters independently!"
Though Han felt bitter inside, he couldn't deny that Seiki's suggestion made sense.
"And Chikuma-sama," Seiki shifted focus, "whether you like it or not, letting Kakuzu—a wanted criminal—escape was indeed your failure in duty. If Kakuzu causes trouble again in the future, the other ninja villages will surely come after you."
Chikuma's face fell. Indeed, they bore undeniable responsibility for this matter.
"And since Shimaseki revealed the existence of the Hero Water, even without Iwagakure's involvement, Takumi will inevitably face many future covetous eyes. Plus, Lord Shibuya mentioned before that the Hero Water has always been a double-edged sword for Takumi. Perhaps its destruction isn't necessarily a bad thing. So, could we possibly lower our demands for compensation from Iwagakure a bit?"
Chikuma wasn't completely comfortable with this point. Just as he was about to argue, his expression suddenly changed slightly. Before he could speak, Shibuya approached them.
"Lord Seiki Shimaseki makes a very reasonable point. We agree!"
Han, who had originally been planning to find some "evidence" later to manipulate the compensation issue, no longer felt the need to dwell on such petty matters after seeing Shibuya and Han go this far.
"Fine! I agree to the compensation too!"
As he spoke, Han couldn't help but admire the man internally.
He had originally worried that Seiki Shimaseki would use this as an excuse to go after Iwagakure, but to his surprise, the other party truly considered the matter from the perspective of peace within the shinobi world.
That kind of open-mindedness and generosity really deserved respect.
With this thought in mind, Han swept his hand forward decisively, "Let's go!"
The Iwagakure ninja quickly followed after receiving the order.
After all, the pressure from that giant statue was just too much to handle.
Shibuya didn't stop them since Seiki was a witness and he wasn't worried about them going back on their word.
After all the Iwagakure ninja had left, Lord Shibuya Chikuma anxiously asked, "Lord Seiki, what you said just now..."
Seiki coughed twice, interrupting, "Let's continue this conversation somewhere else."
They suppressed their eagerness as they led Seiki to a secret room and asked, "Lord Seiki, was what you said through mental transmission earlier really true?"
"Just a moment," Seiki smiled and used the [Flying Thunder God Technique] to disappear before the two's eyes. In the next instant, he reappeared holding a bottle.
At the sight of the bottle, both of them became excited.
"It's really the Hero Water!"
"Lord Seiki, we're truly grateful to you!"
Seiki explained, "Actually, I arrived just as you and Iwagakure began fighting. However, I hadn't yet decided whether to reveal myself since my identity has become somewhat sensitive to Iwagakure."
"Later, when I saw your battle might destroy the Hero Water, I sent a needle inscribed with the [Flying Thunder God Technique] Form through the water to Zukiri. At the exact moment when your chakra burst, I used the [Flying Thunder God Technique] to teleport there and took the Hero Water away."
"However, I knew the Hero Water would bring you trouble, so I wanted to make the Hero Water 'disappear' from the shinobi world temporarily. I planned to reappear separately after your fight was over and return it to you. I just didn't expect your battle to be that intense!"
Chikuma's face turned red with shame—his impulsiveness had nearly destroyed Takumi!
Shibuya felt both ashamed and moved, "We made you lose Kakuzu, whom you had finally captured, yet instead of blaming us, Lord Seiki, you've helped us with such a huge favor. I don't even know how to thank you properly!"
A look of surprise flickered across Seiki's eyes. "The one you finally captured... Did you misunderstand something?"
Chikuma cursed under her breath, "Those idiots from Iwagakure! Didn't think the Hero Water would end up back with us after all!"
Seiki coughed twice. "Let's keep this quiet."
"I know," Chikuma nodded repeatedly. "If word about the Hero Water leaks out again, we'll be the ones to suffer!"
Shibuya meanwhile took out a small bottle and poured some of the Hero Water from the original container into it. He then solemnly handed the small bottle to Seiki, saying, "Lord Seiki, we Takumi don't have anything particularly impressive to offer as a gift, so please accept this as our token of gratitude!"
"This really won't do!" Seiki repeatedly declined.
"There's no one more deserving of the name Hero Water than you, Lord Seiki!" Shibuya insisted.
"That's right, Lord Seiki, please accept it!" Chikuma also urged beside him. "The [Sacred Tree] produces Hero Water only once every hundred years, and the next batch will be ready in just a decade. This amount is more than enough for us!"
"In that case..." Seiki looked reluctant but finally relented. "Then I shall accept it."
Seeing Seiki finally agree to accept the gift, Shibuya and Chikuma both nodded in satisfaction. "Now you're talking!"
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~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** on the weekend!